Georgia Southern, Georgia State, South Alabama, ULM advance to Sun Belt Women’s Soccer Tournament Semifinals
Published 8:57 am Thursday, November 4, 2021
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Georgia Southern, Georgia State, South Alabama and ULM all earned victories on Wednesday at the Sun Belt Women’s Soccer Tournament, contested at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex, and advanced to the event’s semifinal round.
The semifinals take place on Friday beginning at 4 p.m. CT with second-seeded South Alabama taking on third-seeded Georgia State. Fourth-seeded Georgia Southern and eighth-seeded ULM meet at 7 p.m. CT Friday. Both contests will be broadcast on ESPN+.
The strength of the league has been on full display through the first two days of the event. For the first time in tournament history, the first seven matches have been decided by one or fewer goals.
Match 4: (3) Georgia State 2, (11) App State 1 [OT]
Box Score | Photo Gallery
Georgia State senior Eva Diez Lois’ golden goal in the 93rd minute Wednesday at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex gave the third-seeded Panthers a 2-1 overtime win against 11th-seeded App State.
The Panthers (9-3-7) have advanced to the semifinals of the Sun Belt Conference Women’s Soccer Tournament for the fifth consecutive year. Georgia State moves on to play second-seeded South Alabama on Friday. That semifinal match is set for 4 p.m. CT Friday and will be broadcast on ESPN+.
It marked Diez Lois’ second goal of the day, both off of assists from junior Jimena Cabrero. Diez Lois now has four goals on the season.
Her first goal of the day came in the 26th minute off a corner kick and put the Panthers ahead 1-0.
App State (7-11-1) evened the score when sophomore Breckyn Monteith charted her second goal of the tournament and 10th of the season in the 45th minute just before halftime.
Georgia State held a 12-11 advantage in the shots in the match, including an 8-3 edge in shots on goal.
Panthers’ goalkeeper Maria Subies earned the win with a pair of saves, while Mountaineers’ goalkeeper Kerry Eagleston took the loss with six saves. Both keepers went the distance in the match.
Match 5: (2) South Alabama 1, (7) Little Rock 1 [South Alabama advances on PKs, 3-1]
Box Score | Photo Gallery
It took penalty kicks on Wednesday at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex for South Alabama to advance to its ninth consecutive Sun Belt Conference Women’s Soccer Tournament Semifinals. The second-seeded Jaguars tied seventh-seeded Little Rock, 1-1, before advancing 3-1 on penalty kicks.
South Alabama (10-4-3) will face third-seeded Georgia State in Friday’s first semifinal match at 4 p.m. CT. It will be broadcast by ESPN+.
The Jaguars made their first three penalty kick attempts as Imane Addi, Morgan White and Gabrielle Gayle all converted. South Alabama goalkeeper Jaidy Campos came up big, stopping three of four penalty kick attempts from the Trojans.
The match was scoreless until the 78th minute when Little Rock freshman Jana Heinen registered her fifth goal of the season.
South Alabama evened the score in the 88th minute when it benefited from an own goal.
The Jaguars out-shot the Trojans 26-6 in the match, including a 16-3 edge in shots-on-goal.
Both goalkeepers played all 110 minutes. Campos registered two saves for South Alabama, while Little Rock’s Saskia Wagner came up with 16 saves.
Little Rock (7-7-6) has played in a remarkable six matches that came down to PKs at the Sun Belt Soccer Tournament since 2017.
Match 6: (8) ULM 2, (1) Arkansas State 1
Box Score | Photo Gallery
Eighth-seeded ULM on Wednesday punched its first-ever ticket to the Sun Belt Women’s Soccer Tournament Semifinals with a 2-1 win against top-seeded Arkansas State at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex.
ULM (8-11) advances to face fourth-seeded Georgia Southern in Friday’s second semifinal, which is slated for a 7 p.m. CT start. The match will be broadcast by ESPN+.
The Warhawks quickly got on the scoreboard when freshman Taylor Henry found fellow rookie Mara Grutkamp for her fifth goal of the season in the 10th minute. Henry broke away for a goal of her own in the 69th minute to give ULM a 2-0 advantage.
Arkansas State (10-6-2) cut its deficit to one in the 73rd minute when senior forward Sarah Sodoma recorded her seventh goal of the year and the 36th of her career.
Both goalkeepers – ULM’s Hailey Hillock and Arkansas State’s Megan McClure – went the full 90 minutes and each charted nine saves.
The teams were even statistically with 17 shots apiece. ULM held a 12-10 advantage in shots on goal.
Match 7: (4) Georgia Southern 1, (5) Coastal Carolina 0
Box Score | Photo Gallery
First-team All-Sun Belt Conference selection Marcela Montoya’s goal in the 46th minute on Wednesday led fourth-seeded Georgia Southern to a 1-0 win against fifth-seeded Coastal Carolina at the Foley Sports Tourism Complex.
The Eagles (10-6-4) advance to their first Sun Belt Women’s Soccer Tournament Semifinals since 2017. Georgia Southern will face eighth-seeded ULM in Friday’s second semifinal, which is set for a 7 p.m. CT start. The match will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Montoya’s goal, which came 22 seconds into the second half, was her ninth of the season and came off an assist from sophomore forward Faith Phillips.
Coastal Carolina (6-9-2) held a 14-12 edge in shots, including a 5-2 advantage in shots on goal.
Both goalkeepers played the full 90 minutes. Georgia Southern’s Michaela English recorded five saves, while Coastal Carolina’s Ky Hudson had one save.
2021 Sun Belt Women’s Soccer Tournament
First Round – Monday, November 1
Match 1 – (11) App State 2, (6) Texas State 1
Match 2 – (7) Little Rock 1, (10) Louisiana 1 [Little Rock advances on PKs, 3-0]
Match 3 – (8) ULM 1, (9) Troy 0
Second Round – Wednesday, November 3
Match 4 – (3) Georgia State 2, (11) App State 1 [OT]
Match 5 – (2) South Alabama 1, (7) Little Rock 1 [South Alabama advances on PKs, 3-1]
Match 6 – (8) ULM 2, (1) Arkansas State 1
Match 7 – (4) Georgia Southern 1, (5) Coastal Carolina 0
Semifinals – Friday, November 5
Match 8 – (2) South Alabama vs. (3) Georgia State, 4 p.m. CT
Match 9 – (4) Georgia Southern vs. (8) ULM, 7 p.m. CT
Championship – Sunday, November 7
Match 10 – Winner Match 8 vs. Winner Match 9, 1 p.m. CT
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